Nuclear Power Deception
...is the title of the above-mentioned book, by Arjun Makhijani and Scott Saleska, published by Apex Press in 1999. The book, as can be guessed from the title, critically examines the claims that have been made about nuclear power's advantages.

The main claims the energy industry has made about nuclear power are that 1) it has the potential of providing extremely cheap power ("too cheap to meter" was an early phrase used by nuke boosters), and 2) that the public need not worry about the safety of nuclear power plants in its communities (especially more recent claims that new reactor designs are "inherently safe"). Little research is required to show that both of these claims by the industry aren't even believed within the industry.

A brief review of power economics shows that, even if the day-to-day operation of a nuclear plant was very inexpensive, the transmission and distribution of the power alone would prevent the costs of power to homes and industry from being much lower than those associated with coal plants. As it is, the extremely low concentration of suitable uranium in nature, the cost and danger of enriching the fuel to a point that it can be used in power plants, the extreme expense of designing and building the power plants, the ongoing costs of operating and securing the power plants, and the expense of dealing with the wastes produced all conspire to make nuclear power uneconomic. The only time this appeared differently was early in the industry's history, when there were large government subsidies for military and political reasons.

Makhijani and Salesak argue that industry claims of "inherently safe" reactors are similarly baseless. Currently operating reactor designs are very unlikely to fail in ways that create explosions, but (as evidenced by history) are somewhat vulnerable to meltdowns . New, untested designs promise to greatly reduce the likelyhood of meltdowns, but may fail in ways that are more likely to lead to explosions - surely not a net safety improvement. Since the new designs cited by industry as "inherently safe" have yet to be built, it's impossible to know what other safety problems could arise. Meltdowns weren't predicted to be a problem with the currently operating reactors, which were in their time advertised much as the current "inherently safe" designs are. Also of great concern is the nuclear weapon proliferation potential of nuclear waste, which would not be adequately addressed by any of the proposed new reactor designs.

If even the newest and best reactor designs would continue to be of questionable safety and economy, how will the human race ever be able to cut down on greenhouse gas emissions while continuing to provide the power levels we depend on? Though this is not the main focus of the book, Makhijani and Saleska close by sketching out a medium-term strategy of phasing out coal and nuclear power plants in favor of newer natural gas plants and widespread efficiency measures. In the long term, they suggest that developments in renewable energy sources and further efficiency measures should allow the world's growing population to produce needed energy without fatally polluting the atmosphere or exposing us to the environmentail and military dangers of widespread nuclear power.
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